Sheriff's office takes unwanted prescription drugs

MILTON — The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and local law enforcement recognized April 28 as National Prescription Drug Take Back Day.

While the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office recognized this day, the agency always takes unwanted prescription drugs at their offices, according to Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Rich Aloy.

At each SRCSO location in Milton, Pace, Jay, Navarre and Gulf Breeze, there is a drop box that accepts prescription pills, prescription patches, drug samples, pet medication, over-the-counter medication and vitamins.

According to the DEA, unused or expired prescription medications are a public safety issue, leading to accidental poisoning, overdose and abuse. Pharmaceutical drugs can be just as dangerous as street drugs when taken without a prescription or a doctor’s supervision.

“The non-medical use of prescription drugs ranks second only to marijuana as the most common form of drug abuse in America,” a pamphlet from the DEA said. “The majority of teenagers abusing prescription drugs get them from family and friends — and the home medicine cabinet.”

Throwing unused prescription drugs in the trash isn’t safe, because they can be recovered and abused or illegally sold. Flushing unused drugs down the toilet can contaminate the water supply. If there is not a drug take-back program available, the DEA suggests taking the medicine out of their bottles; mixing them with something unappealing like used cat litter or coffee grounds; sealing them in a bag or disposable container; and throwing it away.

Last year's country-wide Prescription Drug Take Back Day collected a record-breaking 912,305 pounds of prescription drugs, according to the DEA’s website. The national event was launched in 2010 by the DEA, and since then has collected more than 9 million pounds of medicine from the public.

This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Sheriff's office takes unwanted prescription drugs